Debate

An old, and old-fashioned, dream of medicine was to live without bacteria. However today we now know how wrong that was. We play host to approximately 2 kg of them, coexisting and having an impact on a wide range of processes, many of which were unimaginable just a few years ago. It has been called the last organ: the microbiome. To share and discuss these and other advances, some of the top experts in the world met on June 30th and July 1st reunited by B·Debate and the IrsiCaixa AIDS Research Center .

Microbiome: from microbes to new medicines

An old, and old-fashioned, dream of medicine was to live without bacteria. However today we now know how wrong that was. We play host to approximately 2 kg of them, coexisting and having an impact on a wide range of processes, many of which were unimaginable just a few years ago. It has been called the last organ: the microbiome.

Research into its importance in terms of health is one of the main areas of activity in the field of biomedicine. Some of the latest discoveries include, for example, that pregnancy isn't a sterile process, as previously thought, as the placenta has its own microbiome that can influence fetal development; that there seems to be a critical window, at around three months old, when changes in the bacterial ecosystem can predispose a child to developing asthma; that it is possible to administer certain bacteria to boost cancer treatment, which has given rise to what is called ‘oncomicrobiotics’; and that scientists continue to work to perfect what is known as a feces transplant, a new form of treatment that could change the course of illnesses like diabetes.

CONCLUSIONS

Contrary to previous beliefs, pregnancy isn’t a sterile process. The placenta has its own microbiome that seems to have an impact on fetal development. Furthermore, scientists are starting to question the association between cesarean birth and changes to the microbiome.

Children with a tendency to develop asthma have a different microbiome when they're three months old, but not when they're one. This window of time could be a therapeutic opportunity.

A new concept has developed, oncomicrobiotics: bacteria administered to boost the effectiveness of cancer therapies by improving immune response.

Research continues on feces transplants, but looking to the future, selecting more effective bacteria for each situation and administering them in a more controlled manner.

“In developed countries no one dies of tuberculosis, leprosy or syphilis anymore, but 20% of Europeans suffer from asthma, 5% will develop colon cancer and the number of cases of multiple sclerosis doubles every 10 years. Many of these non-transmittable chronic illnesses are increasing,...

New knowledge of the microbiome has given rise to a new term. In addition to what is known as probiotics, we may soon be talking aboutoncomicrobiotics: cocktails of microorganisms that could boost the effectiveness of cancer therapies.

There are different ways to modify the microbiome in an attempt to improve health. There are probiotics and prebiotics, but the most radical method is a feces transplant from a healthy donor. This procedure has been...